


Chasing A Dream So Real

by CityofAangels



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Cute, Fluff, Kid Fic, Love, M/M, Superfamily, a bit of angst, so much love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-25
Updated: 2016-09-19
Packaged: 2018-07-26 17:42:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,527
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7583794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CityofAangels/pseuds/CityofAangels
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Tony and the Avengers team took the initiative to go to the hospital to see the children who had been hurt, they should have known they were bound to get attached.</p><p>After all, it was a place full of very cute, very vulnerable children who adored them.</p><p>They just didn't expect to get that attached.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello !
> 
> So. I'm nervous. That's the FIRST work I post in here, the first thing I write about the Avengers... And the first time I write in English.
> 
> Very important thing : English is NOT my first language. I'm a French speaker, so I will do mistakes and write weird things and I'm really sorry. I have no beta reader, but if someone wants to do it, don't hesitate to ask me.
> 
> I love Superfamily stories, so I wanted to write one. It will be cute, so I hope you like it. The girl is totally named after my cousin, I have no shame.

Later, when Tony and the Avengers team thought about it, they realized it was bound to happen. After all, their jobs was _literally_ to save lives (and kill monsters, sometimes). Amongst those lives where children. Very tiny, very cute and very lovable children. Who loved them in return, no question about that. Honestly, they had to get attached at one point. They just didn't expect to get _that_ attached.

 

It was Tony, kind and generous Tony Stark, who first had the idea of going to the hospital every time there were children there who got hurt during a fight. Thankfully, it didn't happen all that often, but it happened nonetheless. Tony did that quietly – well, secretly was more like it. His teammates would realize that he had disappeared and, when he finally came back, he never ever told them where he had been. Finally, Barton followed him one afternoon – he was _worried_ okay, don't even think about making him guilty – and came back with a huge smile and a new love for Tony. The talk that Tony had had with the team afterwards was not the best one in his life. He was embarrassed and had to focus really, really hard not to blush when Steve congratulated him for his initiative. Which was awful because, come on, Steve was Captain America, the guy who saved kittens and helped old ladies cross the road. That wasn't even a myth.

 

After this awful conversation, the team began to follow Tony when he left for the hospital. Sometimes, they were all there, and even if they had to leave for a mission, they made sure they had signed enough photographs to make the children happy.

 

Tony always left for the hospital with his tablet, which contained awesome games and apps for the kids to play with if they wanted to. Steve was surprised to see him as relaxed around children as he was : he expected him to be awkward around them, but that wasn't even close to reality. He was careful not to hurt or tire the weakest ones, to listen to them when they talked, and he always kept physical contact with them, ruffling their hair, squeezing their shoulders. His smile was as bright and true as Steve had ever seen it and he loved to see him interact with children. Whatever the age or gender of the child, Tony got along with him or her, understanding very quickly what they wanted and never complaining. He was more than great with them.

 

Steve, on the other hand, was a little awkward around them at first. He knew that he was strong enough to hurt them if he wasn't careful. So he was extra careful and didn't even dare touch them. He distracted them with his sketchpads and his pencils, letting them draw and offering them advices. His awkwardness lasted until the day when a very little, very frail girl just jumped on his lap and demanded to be hugged. Never one to disappoint someone, Steve obeyed and didn't let her go for two hours straight.

 

Barton had success with older children, around ten. They just loved to see his bow and always asked him to shoot an arrow – which he normally did, in an apple, because Barton was a show-off like that. He was careful enough to refuse that they tried after him, but he always promised them private lessons when they got out of the hospital, and he kept his promises. It meant that, often, children wandered around the tower, amazed by the archery range Tony had built and by the tower in general. Clint was awesome with them when he taught how to shoot : patient, careful not to upset them with critics too violent, he always congratulated them profusely when they touched the target.

 

Natasha was more at ease with the littlest ones. She was a gifted storyteller and seemed to have an endless collection of tales and stories stored in her head. The moment she began to talk, the kids fell silent and didn't dare tell a word until she had finished. They always asked her for more and she was happy to comply. The babies loved her just because she sang to them in Russian – soothing melodies which always worked wonders when they refused to sleep. She was greatly admired by all the children and, often, girls went to tell her that, thanks to her, they weren't ashamed anymore to practice a ''boy's sport''. Natasha always got a soft smile when she heard that and encouraged them to keep going.

 

Thor… When he was here, children basically considered him as a golden puppy – which, let's not lie, he was. They wanted to ride on his back through the hospital's corridors, to see how many of them he could hold at the same time (an awful lot) and they just loved his weird way of talking. He had soon realized that his hammer was very popular, and always brought it with him nowadays, loving the way the kids desperately tried to lift it. Of course, they weren't capable of moving it, but he always took great care to reassure them, repeating over and over that it didn't mean they were bad guys or, at least, not good enough – they were just a little bit too young.

 

And Bruce… Well, Bruce was a problem. At first, he strongly refused to come along with them, arguing that the Hulk was way too dangerous and that they were crazy even to consider it. When they had said again and again that he had better control than he thought, and that they would ensure that nothing happened, he came along but didn't touch or even talked to one of the children. It lasted several weeks, of him hiding behind his teammates, ashamed and afraid, before a miracle happened, a miracle in the form of a twelve years old boy. He came timidly to Bruce and simply told him that he loved the Hulk, that the green ''monster'' had proved him that apparences meant nothing, that, even if you appeared mean and dangerous, it didn't mean you were. He spoke truthfully, telling Bruce how much he loved the Hulk and how much it meant for him to see it fight with the others. Tactful, his teammates never mentioned the single tear he had shed, but they had seen it, and it seemed to greatly help Bruce. He was always cautious, but now, he talked to them, about science, about how it was to live with the Hulk, about the life with his crazy teammates in the tower.

 

Once again, it was Tony who had the idea to take things a bit further. He decided to help, financially speaking, parents and family who had trouble to pay for their children's stay at the hospital. He did it almost secretly and with a lot of tact, without showing off his fortune, but with no false modesty either. The only thing he asked for in return was for families not to talk about it to the media. Steve, naively, had asked Tony why he didn't want journalists to know about the good things he did. The look of hurt in Tony's eyes when he had answered, honestly, that journalists and media in general weren't a huge fan of him and always turned things to his disadvantage was enough for Steve to shut up and want to give Tony a hug. He didn't, though. But that had been difficult.

 

Now, they were really well organized and each of their visits was a pleasure for every Avenger. They always came with enough gift boxes for all the children in the hospital – they didn't want any jealousy, after all – filled to the brim with Avengers goodies, little toys, movies and everything a child in a hospital could like. Each of them had learned to know what kids liked and didn't like and they were friends with most of the nurses and doctors, who, not unlike the children, always had a big smile on their face when they saw them coming.

 

So really. Spending that much time with adorable and hurt children, children who sometimes were in really difficult situations, was bound to be a problematic situation.

 

Surprisingly, everything went well for approximatively six months. Then, a huge battle in the middle of a residential neighborhood made a lot of victims and, a few days later, they went to the hospital, knowing that some of these children had lost someone they knew. It was a difficult day, filled with laughter, yes, but with a lot of tears and each of them could feel the guilt of not having been able to save everybody. It was hard, always, to see that they couldn't be there for everybody, but it was especially hard when it had consequences on the children they spent time with.

 

Tony, accompanied with Steve, was just getting ready to enter the room of a little girl when a nurse approached them, a grim expression on her face.

 

« Listen, gentlemen, she told them, not unkindly. You have to know that this little girl… Well, she lost both of her parents during the attack, unfortunately. We tried to find her family but, for now, no one can tell us if she has any grandparents, or uncle, or cousins. We don't know anything about her, apparently, her family moved in New York just a few weeks ago. She refuses to talk, even if we're almost sure she can do it. She's kind of special, but don't worry, she's really cute… She just has a lot of difficulty to deal with her grief, it's too much for a kid this age. »

A smile on his lips, Tony turned around and shrugged.

« ''Kind of special'' is an expression a lot of people used to describe me. Don't worry, we'll be careful with her, he promised with a wink (the nurse totally blushed).

\- And we'll call you if we have any kind of problems, added Steve.

\- After all, she can't be worse that giant caterpillars. That's a thing, did you know that, miss ? One day, someone woke up and thought ''oh hell yeah, giant caterpillars, that is a good idea, for sure''. Bad guys, sometimes you wonder what they think about. They're hopeless, I swear. »

 

Rolling his eyes, Steve smiled to the nurse (who blushed a little harder, if that was even possible) and opened the door quietly after knocking, careful not to surprise the girl – Jade, that's what was written on the door.

 

It took approximately ten seconds, the time for Tony to cross these incredible green eyes and to see her playing with what seemed to be a calculator. After that, he knew : he was fucked. She was too cute. Dangerously cute for his damaged heart.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Surprise ! Jade is totally adorable. And totally a mini-Tony. Steve is totally frustrated, boo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... I guess I'm not dead ?  
> No, seriously, I'm really sorry. I had like three months of holidays and I'm always totally unable to write during holidays, don't even ask me why. But yay, school again, so I'm back !
> 
> English is still not my first language and I still don't have a Beta, so I'm really sorry about the mistakes you'll certainly find.

« I swear to God, Steve, there must be a concealed camera, muttered Tony. She's playing with a calculator ! She's like… a mini-me.

\- Tony.

\- Yep ?

\- You know she can hear you, right ? She's not deaf or something.

\- Shit. »

 

Ignoring the not-so-discret « _language_ » Steve whispered behind him, Tony took a few steps and smiled his favorite bright smile. He could almost hear his heart stop, then start again when Jade returned a smile almost as big – but in her case, the two front teeth were missing.

 

« Hey you ! greeted Tony, gently. Jade, that's right ? I guess you know who we are, but just in case, I'm Tony and that's Steve. Iron Man and Captain America, if you prefer, but really, Tony and Steve are fine. Tell me, how old are you ? »

 

Staying just behind Tony, Steve smiled softly when he saw the little girl hold six fingers… Then adding a seventh briefly.

 

« You're six and a half, that's right ? he asked. You're a big girl for your age, you must eat a lot of spinach !

\- Seriously, Steve ? Who do you think you are, Popeye ? Don't tell anybody, he added in a semi-whisper to Jade, but that's wrong. Spinach won't make you bigger. Look at me, I didn't eat any and… »

 

He raised an eyebrow when he heard Steve snort behind him and slowly turned around, frowning when he saw his face. Steve seemed to take a stupid pleasure in the fact that Tony was almost two heads smaller than him. Stupid serum. Stupid super soldier. What he hadn't in height, he had it in intelligence. Don't even bother contradict him.

 

« Yeah, don't listen to Steve, especially. He's like… ninety. He doesn't know what he's saying anymore. Half of his brain melted when they de-froze him. You like math, am I right ? You have a nice calculator ! Look, I got something who might interest you… »

 

He took his Starkpad out of his backpack and sat on the edge of the bed, starting an app he had developed himself. Steve would probably never admit it, but he loved this app – don't blame him, it was awesome. In it, you were Iron Man, which wasn't a huge surprise, really, and you had to give the right answer to different calculations, so Iron Man could keep on flying, until he arrived in front of the bad guy. Then, the player had to answer math problems in order to fire the repulsors. The same game existed with grammar or historical questions, and children everywhere simply loved it.

The little girl quickly became absorbed in the game, answering the questions with a rapidity that astounded them both. She didn't talk, but she smiled or laughed when Iron Man did something funny on the screen. At the end of the game, she was in Tony's lap, apparently needing the physical contact, and Tony had both arms around her and his gaze fixed on what she did. Very silently, Steve took his phone out of his pocket and snapped a quick picture, unable to stop himself : they were simply too cute. Curiously, they almost appeared to be of the same family. The little girl had dark hair which were of the same color as Tony's, and some of her expressions almost seemed copied from him. Their eyes, however, were very different : Jade's were of a very light green, which you couldn't stop looking at once you crossed her gaze.

Jade finished the game, provoking a small animated scene where Iron Man danced around what remained of the bad guy. The dance he tried to do was completely ridiculous… and strongly based on what he really did a lot of the time after battles. Tony didn't hesitate one second before tightening his embrace and congratulating her profusely, ruffling her hair for good measure. He was careful not to hurt her though – the little girl was still covered in bruises and her right ankle was in a brace. That was a thing Tony always did with children : telling them that they were awesome, always paying attention when they talked, never dismissing their ideas or reflexions… and he loved physical contact almost as much as the kids did. He always had an hand on their shoulder, an arm around them, his fingers in their hair. In summary, he was always almost ridiculously attentive to them, and Steve knew, a painful knowledge, that Tony tried his best not to be like his father was.

 

« You're really good at that ! Iron Man almost couldn't fly fast enough to follow. Tell me, is that your favorite thing to do ? »

 

With a bit of hesitation, Jade slowly gestured that it wasn't and quickly grabbed something on the little table next to her bed. It was an enormous book about dinosaurs, retracing their story and what scientists knew about them. It was a kid-friendly book, sure, but something written for kids that were ten years old or more. The fact that Jade already knew how to read (and how to solve math problems, too), was surprising enough ; the fact that she read books for children almost twice her age made Steve raise his eyebrows in surprise. Indeed, she was a ''mini-Tony''.

 

« Dinosaurs, uh ? chuckled the genius. I should have known – I loved them too when I was your age, even if robots were already my favorites. 

\- D'you know what I learned the other day ? asked Steve, finally sitting on the bed with them. I was studying dinosaurs, and I learned that the smallest dinosaurs which existed, well, they were only the size of a T-Rex tooth. Can you imagine that ? »

 

Jade giggled – and no, the two men absolutely didn't melt at the sound – and tried to imagine it by measuring a small space between two of her fingers.

 

« Do you know that 'cause you had one for a roommate when you were a teenager ? asked Tony innocently. »

 

Steve just glared at him and rolled his eyes, not even bothering to answer. Tony was just opening his mouth to add something to his joke when the door suddenly opened, Clint and Natasha stepping inside, always very graceful and quiet.

 

« Hey there ! greeted Clint. Sh… _ark_ , you're a cute kid. Tony, Steve, I don't want to pressure you, but journalists just entered the building. The nurses are trying to deny them access, but they want to interview the children. We should go before one of them comes here, you know how they are. Soulless, evil, stupid. Well, journalists, really. Let's go ? »

 

Tony grimaced and hesitantly got up. He _so_ didn't want to leave. It was always difficult, leaving these children behind knowing that they very probably wouldn't meet them again but that… that was worse. He slowly turned to Jade and winked, doing his best to erase every negative emotion on his face.

 

« You know what ? he whispered in her ear, knowing perfectly well that every person in this room could hear him, no matter how discreet he tried to be. I could try to come back in a few days, I need some kids to test a new app and you seem to be the perfect girl to help me. Would you like that ?

\- Tony…

\- Not talking to you, old man. So, Jade, d'you want me to come back ? »

 

Slowly, shyly, the girl nodded and smiled. Tony, happy, grinned in return and offered her a thumbs-up, quickly hugging her and kissing her soundly – and wetly – on her cheek.

 

« That's great ! So I'll see you soon – I won't tell you when, that's a surprise. Be nice with the nurses, I know they can be annoying but they do that for you. I guess. Bye ! »

 

Natasha, Steve and Clint all raised their eyebrows while watching him leave but hid their surprise and said their goodbye to Jade.

 

In the corridor, Tony was waiting for them, already tapping on his Starkphone with a frown, seemingly undisturbed by what just happened.

 

« To-

\- Don't, Steve, quickly cut Natasha. We need to get out of here quickly, you'll talk once we're outside. Come on. »

 

They all followed her, getting out far away from any journalist and unwanted attention. Apparently, Steve was calm but, inward, he was angry : they had decided long ago that they would do their best to avoid getting attached. Yes, it was hard, sometimes horrible to do, but every one of them followed this rule – even Clint didn't see the children after the archery lesson he occasionally gave them. For the major part, these kids had a family and the heroes simply couldn't afford to interfere in one way or another in their life. Tony had just broken everything they did since the beginning. Steve wouldn't let that pass. He waited until they were back at the Tower, breathing slowly to try not to snap in front of the others, but Tony's nonchalance made it all very difficult. As soon as the car stopped and the engineer went away to his lab, Steve ran to him and put a hand on his shoulder to stop him. He could almost hear Tony roll his eyes, but the smaller man took a deep breath and slowly turned.

 

« Listen, Steve, he said without giving the soldier a chance to talk. I know what you're gonna say. We shouldn't get attached, we promised, it will make everything more difficult, she already has a family and all this shit. You don't want to come next time I go see her ? Well, that's your choice. But this little girl ? She lost everything, Steve, and I mean it, _everything_. No parents, apparently no family, even her fucking house was destroyed. So, you do whatever the hell you want, but if my being here can help her smile and laugh for a bit, I'll be there, ok ? I'm old enough to realize it will be difficult for her and me when we'll have to say goodbye for the last time, but right now, that's not a problem. Honestly Steve, I thought you of all people should be able to understand that when you lost everything, a friend can help, even if it's just a bit. »

 

A bit hurt and definitely surprised, Steve let Tony leave without further protest and didn't move until it was too late and the doors to the lab were swiftly closing.

Well. That was _definitely_ going to be a problem.


End file.
